Thread: Lets talk game prices (And why they are too cheap).

Bring these opinions here too!

Lets talk game prices (And why they are too cheap).
Lets talk game prices (And why they are too cheap).

Honestly I can say I'm not surprised this happened, and I understand reservations about spending $110 on 1 game, something that I wouldn't do on a sp game... That being said if I play it for 11mths that's really $10 a month. I'd prefer to see the base game cost $25, and $10/mth subscription to Battlefield Premium, and that way I stay up to date and get to play the fun events etc. I spend $110 just taking my family out for a meal and gassing up the car. For the same price I'm getting multiple hours of fun. I find it very acceptable to be honest. I also think games are a commodity, and should be priced accordingly. I prefer to spend $25 - $40 for a sp game. Because I know usually they take around 7 - 19hrs of fun playtime to finish (and then probably not play again). Some sp games surprise me (skyrim, half life, bioshock 3 ( the other two were ok) and Deus Ex stand out in my mind).

Multi-player games need a refreshed view I believe. Kill8ox complained about the price of bf4 in a recent thread, saying no game should cost that. I believe the current $110 price is not only fair but needed to sustain an ever increasing market. Higher prices are inevitable, I doubt mortal kombat 3 cost millions to make, but it cost $60 in the mid nineties. Battlefield 4 has been in development for around 4 years, not including groundwork from older games. The team has made a game that many of you reading this will end up playing for days worth. It's still cheap entertainment at $200/game.

That kind of price would be ridiculous as even the most money laden gamers would think twice about that... (yet they'll buy dual titans and not blink ). But think about it for a second. Imagine a world where a game costs $100. Now imagine the quality they'd need to produce to make it a viable option... COD has had a massive following. They love that game and it is always similar to the last - if they charged the hundred then players would be more inclined to wait for sales or simply not buy. In fact what games would you buy if they cost that much. Your time would be more invested in games too. You wouldn't flip from the next best thing to the next.

Of course you don't have to buy premium, if tpg does what they did on bf3 (I hope they don't) but if they do you'll still only pay $60 for that game. So really it comes down to this.....



If a game is good enough would you pay $110?

Originally Posted by maximusboomus

If a game is good enough would you pay $110?

If the game is good enough but only lasts an hour, then No.

If the game is good enough and still fun for hundreds of hours, then Yes.

Originally Posted by maximusboomus

DISCUSSION POINT:
Do you believe games are fairly priced as an entertainment medium in todays market.


This will be interesting. I want a legit, serious, actually think before posting thread here about something thats been in the back of my mind for a few years now (I may have even posted about this in a mini rant...).

I went to a bar to play pool last night. I paid approx $5 / drink, $20 worth of "rental" for the table and had a $6 poutine. When I got back to my place with my buddies we smoked a cigar and drank a good whisky. $7/cigar, $90 whisky. My evening lasted about 5 hours, the cost of that enjoyment was ((5x2)+20+6+7+5)=48) $48.

The week before I went to the movies. I paid $20 worth for ticket, popcorn and drink (ugh I hate paying this much!) for a 2 hr movie.

It turns out it seems my downtime when doing something costs me $10/hr.

I'd played a few hours of video games...

$29 L4D2 (821hrs) $0.04/hr - side note I am betting 25% of that is me in the lobby waiting for someone...
$49 BC2 (300hrs) $0.16/hr
$120 BF3 (353hrs) $0.35/hr
$45 Skyrim (275hrs) $0.17/hr

Now any hobby costs less than going out. IE I love reading a book - $10 (Takes me say 6hrs to read) thats an average of $1.70 per hour of my enjoyment. I also love photography but as its also my business I'll refrain from using that as the #s are far beyond obnoxious for costing...

My point is this: I paid $35 for sonic the hedgehog when I was a kid (If my memory serves me right) back in 1992. 20 years later a game is worth $30-60. Meanwhile my shoes (converse all stars) have gone from $12 to $65.

For the amount of entertainment you get from a game do you believe the cost is fair? I understand we all prefer cheaper games - trust me I don't want to spend more than $30 on a game. But really, if we think about it is the cost really that high, and would you be accepting if your next dream game arrived with a $79.99 tag?

Max you need to include the $ of beer and snacks you are consuming while playing those games since you included it your movie and pool prices. Just to be fair.

However I agree with you premise, well actually with Alundil in the 2nd post really.I figure at about $5 an hour.

I have 1432 hours in Civ 5. I bought the game, both expansions and all the DLC (most on sale) call it $60 or about $.04/hr and I still have a lot to play. Or games like an absolutely horrible game that I gave up on after 30 minutes. That game cost me $120/hr.

Some games like Starcraft I have bought for just myself 3 times and the expansion twice. I kept losing my key back in the days before on line storage.

The problem is you never know when you buy a game if it will be a Fallen Enchantress or a Civilization type of title.

Originally Posted by Glitch

Max you need to include the $ of beer and snacks you are consuming while playing those games since you included it your movie and pool prices. Just to be fair.

True I never stopped to think of that - I average 2 beers a gaming night, a case cost $38 so that's $1.50 / bottle so add $3.00 to the nights entertainment. I don't snack but my brother in law does - Steg would eat a bag of crisps ($4) so approx $7/night of gaming.

So a higher apparent cost than before but still cheap...

Very good point though!